Powerful Fall Storm Brings Strong Winds to the Area

A major fall storm system that developed Monday afternoon brought severe weather and two days of high winds to parts of the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes. The severe weather was confined to areas east of the Mississippi River, with tornadoes reported from northern Illinois into the Ohio Valley. Tuesday and Wednesday high winds were the story across eastern Iowa, northwest Illinois and northeast Missouri. Strong winds aloft and a tight pressure gradient were the culprits, thanks to the low pressure to the north and high pressure building into the south. The following are a sample of the highest recorded wind gusts on Tuesday and Wednesday from across the area.